Blame It On The Boogie
by Devilish Kurumi
Summary: [Vague GarnetAmarant, more obvious GarnetZidane] Sequel of sorts to Down By The Bay. It's their last day alive and she's spending it drinking with a bounty hunter who likes physics. Who'd guess it?
1. Baile De Los Curiosos

A/N: ALRIGHTY. So this is part 2 of a so-far-3-part thing I've got goin' on here. This takes place nearly half a disc after "Down By The Bay" so you'll want to read that if you want to get everything – not that you really _need_ to, but there's some parts that make more sense after it. I split this up into two parts because I felt like it, so there.

Please excuse any Out Of Characterness there might be - I tried very hard to keep them in and it was difficult to do this without going into crazy OOC mode, so please let me know (after you've read everything) how bad it was.

* * *

Garnet doesn't understand.

No, no, she understands quite well, actually, because unfortunately she is used to hearing both sides of an argument.

Still, she just can't _accept it_, and she knows that no one expects her to. Zidane has gone _so far_ over the edge – _really_, today of _all days_! One of their last days on Gaia, and he's messing around with the items shopkeeper! They might not even be alive soon and he's just being _foolish_.

Garnet's glad that they came to Daguerreo to stock up on supplies before heading to the Shimmering Island, even if it's only proving to give nothing but distractions to the group. Eiko and Vivi have run off to play among the shelves of books, while Steiner has taken it upon himself to update most of their defensive gear - Freya had gone with him to keep him from buying things they no longer needed. Quina had, in her own way, told them of her plans to catch fish in case their next destination had no food. And Zidane, of course, had offered to get the items. Which leads to Garnet's current issue – the blonde thief has made short work of the items keeper and has been mercilessly flirting with her in a way that showed Garnet he would probably be sleeping in her private quarters tonight.

That really annoys her, but she's not sure why.

The princess shuffles along the upper level and tries to get the pressure elevator to work, but it's being stubborn. She sighs and shakes off the idea of kicking the lever, opting to instead wander around the library on this side of the area. She doesn't want to pass by the items shop again.

There's something absolutely enchanting about this place – the feel of all these warm, worn books and the sound of soft, running water... It's all very relaxing, and she finds herself picking up a few books and settling down on a couch to read.

The first book she had chosen is actually rather interesting, discussing the symbolism of many of Lord Avon's plays, and she finds herself scanning over the metaphors found in _I Want To Be Your Canary_. Some of them she had seen herself, but others...

There's the hollow sound of heavy footfalls and she looks up in confusion – people don't seem to make a lot of noise here.

Amarant Coral stalks past the entrance of the library and makes a deeply threatening noise, fists clenching and unclenching. An old man hisses at him to be quiet, and the bounty hunter glares.

"Amarant," the princess calls softly, potentially saving the lives of a lot of innocent people. The redhead glares over his shoulder at his name, and then lets up a little and turns, crossing his arms and slouching over to the couch.

"Should've guessed you'd be _here_, of all places," he mutters.

She manages a small smile and a fairly casual, "I suppose," moving over on the couch to make more room. He notes the move with mild interest and then flops down into the couch, arms stretching out over the back of the sofa, and head tilting over to look at the small text in Garnet's book.

"Feh, what crap are you readin', princess?"

"The symbolism of Lord Avon's plays."

Amarant snorts and tilts his head back slightly, grumbling under his breath. She looks at him briefly and then feigns disinterest, casually asking, "What's the matter?" but not giving him much more than that.

"Damned thief down below was givin' me crap. Seen him around in Treno, and I guess he thinks we're rivals or somethin' now."

She nods at this and doesn't ask questions, so Amarant reaches over and grabs one of the other books Garnet had pulled off of the shelves.

"You don't read much of anythin' interestin', do you?" he asks casually. "No fantasy, no science..." He smirks at her sideways, "Hell, I don't even see any romance novels, and those are a staple in a girl's life."

Garnet blushes a little and looks up at him in annoyance. "Just because I don't read what _you_ enjoy doesn't mean that these aren't any less interesting."

"You don't even have anythin' on the basic theories of physics," he groans. "It isn't interestin' if it doesn't have physics involved."

She blinks and shows more surprise than she had wanted to, "You read books on physics?"

"What if I do?" he asks, suddenly defensive. She realizes that he never talks about himself – she doesn't even know if anyone _knows _him, really. It's surprising that she could get him to say something – anything – about his hobbies.

She closes the book and puts it to the side, turning slightly and giving him the most inquisitive, innocent gaze she can. "What else do you enjoy reading about, Amarant?"

He raises an eyebrow and scratches the back of his neck, looking around in mild... embarrassment? No, someone like Amarant wouldn't get embarrassed over anything, _especially_ about what kind of books he reads, or that he reads at all.

"I don't know," he mumbles. "Science, mostly. Tried to read some history books but they never really get interestin'. Uh," his eyes dart to see if she actually cares, and she _does_, so he adds, "Mathematics, to an extent. Some theology."

"Everything but romance novels," Garnet quips and is surprised when he chuckles a little.

"Yeah, everythin' but." He rolls his eyes and groans, "Look at that. This is probably the second time you've gotten me to talk, and this time it isn't even about your boyfriend. Amazin'."

"Zidane is _not_ my boyfriend," she replies, somewhat too vehemently.

Amarant makes a noise and says, "So, guessin' you saw that little play goin' on over there, then."

Garnet sighs and shakes her head. "It doesn't matter. He's just..."

"Horny as a dog in heat," Amarant cuts her off, "What a fool."

The princess makes a noise and looks back at her book. "Do you have to be so _vulgar_?"

"Oh, grow up, princess. It's not _vulgar_. And I can't help it if it's true." He sighs. "Sorry that it is, for your sake, but you really can't expect much else from him."

"I can expect much _more_ from him!" she exclaims, and the old man at the head of the library gives her a glare.

"You really shouldn't," Amarant shrugs, looking around. "This place reeks of musty old books. There isn't even a bar."

"The inn has food. I suppose it has alcohol too."

He looks at her. "Really. Well, then..." He pushes himself up and stands, crossing his arms and looking at Garnet mildly. "Come on, _princess_."

"Excuse me?"

"You're gonna need a drink, since your boyfriend's being none too loyal."

"He isn't...!"

Amarant doesn't listen and simply starts off towards the circle and, probably, towards the inn. Garnet looks at her small stack of books and decides that really, maybe she could use a drink. Then again, she hasn't really had much more than wine...

She gets up and follows the bounty hunter.

* * *

"Am I not obvious enough?" 

Amarant chuckles into his drink and tries to be completely nonchalant about this entire situation, but it's rather humorous to him that his last day on Gaia is going to be spent with Princess Garnet in a bar in Daguerreo. It's a damned big turn from being a lowlife bounty hunter, that's for sure.

"You're bein' plenty obvious," he says by way of consolation. "He's just not the brightest."

"I've seen that!"

The girl is slightly hunched over a mug of lager, lightly flushed and looking at the tabletop in mild consideration. She's not quite drunk yet – he should probably take that drink away before she slides from tipsy to black-outs and swaying.

Then again, this is _the princess_. He'd be an idiot to pass up the opportunity to see her drunk. Besides, he can handle his drinks plenty well. Nothing will get out of hand.

"I just figured," she sighed, "I don't know what I figured."

"That he actually meant anythin'?" Amarant offers.

"Well, this is what I get for _that_," she grumbles, and lifts the mug with both hands to take a deep gulp.

He runs a hand over his dreads and looks around mildly. He's pretty sure that other than the punk down on the other level, there aren't any thieves here. Most of the people here are old and only have books as a way of money – therefore, they're utterly useless to thieves.

Garnet suddenly makes a noise and sinks down in her seat. "Oh, _no_," she mumbles.

He looks over his shoulder to the entrance of the inn, and smirks. Freya and Steiner, laden with new defense gear and their own weapons, enter.

"They can't _see me_! I'm too..."

"Sit up straight and act the princess," he tells her lowly as Freya makes eye contact with him. She raises an eyebrow but he simply shrugs and turns back to the princess. "You're your own person. Who cares if they find out you've been drinkin'?"

"It's not proper for a princess to..."

"Preconceived notions aren't always true."

She blinks and then nods, sitting up straight and putting her hands in her lap and looking almost perfectly normal, except for the flushed face. Steiner and Freya come over to them.

"Hello," the Burmecian says, smiling completely benevolently and looking around. "Is it worth getting a drink around here?"

"I guess," Amarant shrugs.

Steiner is looking over the situation and Garnet keeps her eyes focused on the table. Amarant sighs and leans a hand on the table, looking at the knight in annoyance. "Your eyes are gonna fall out, old man."

"O-Old!" Steiner exclaims, eyes moving from Garnet's drink to Amarant. "I'll have you know..."

"Steiner," Garnet suddenly asks, "Did you find everything we'll need?"

"Yes," he responds, squinting in confusion at the lager in front of his princess. "...Princess, have you been-"

"Steiner, I do believe you owe me a drink," Freya cuts in, easily pushing the knight. "Let's put these things away and then you can treat me, hm?"

The knight is easily persuaded away to the rooms that they had rented, and Amarant looks at Garnet easily.

"See?"

Garnet sighs and puts her head against the table. "Freya's the only one who would do that."

"I doubt it," he drawls, taking a drink and then looking at her. "What's the matter with you – you haven't had _that_ much to drink."

"Everyone keeps treating me like a _princess_," she sighs against the wood, "I hate it."

"Well, forgive me for pointin' out the obvious, but you _are_ a princess."

"They don't treat Zidane as a thief..."

"Yeah, well, you can't steal much if we give it all to you willingly." He leans back and puts his arms over the back of the booth. "They treat Steiner as a moron, and Vivi as a kid, and me as an ignorant murderer. Do you expect preferential treatment?"

Garnet sits up and looks at him in exasperation. "Vivi _is_ a child! And neither you nor Steiner make any attempt to change our impressions."

"Firstly," Amarant sighs, "Vivi might be a child, but he's also one of the more mature ones in our group. And maybe I don't _want_ to change your impressions of me. Maybe it's easier that way."

"Well, it's too late," Garnet says smugly, "You've already changed _mine_. Really," she leans forward, forearms on the table, "Physics, Amarant?"

"What of it?"

She shrugs and slides down a little in her seat, finishing off her drink and impressing Amarant mildly. "I don't know." She frowns at him curiously, "Why don't you ever talk about yourself?"

"Why don't _you_?"

Garnet tilts her head to the side, "Well, everyone _knows_ me. I'm just the princess. There's nothing special to talk about."

"I'm just a bounty hunter," Amarant tells her.

"But – you're _interesting_," she says plaintively, "I've never met someone like you – maybe you _interest_ me."

"Did you ever consider that I've never met a princess before?" he responds easily, "Maybe _you're_ interestin' to _me_."

"No, I hadn't thought about that," she concedes. "Very well, I suppose... Do you actually want to know anything about me, or are you just trying to prove a point?"

Amarant thinks about it for a minute. He could very easily get some useful information on this girl right now... but that seems kind of underhanded. Then again... Maybe it would be good just to know something about her. After all, she's not _so_ bad, for a little princess – maybe that's just because she's a little drunk.

"What do you like to do, exactly?" he asks, leaning forward and putting his elbows on the tabletop. "I never could figure what royalty did in its spare time."

She blushes and looks around a little, and then mumbles, "Well... I like to read."

"I think we covered that one, princess."

"...I used to take ballet," she confesses, "When I was younger. I like ballet," she decides to say, and then adds, "And, mm, I sing a little."

"So that's _you_ in the middle of the night, is it?" he asks, because that's been driving him crazy for a while now.

"Oh!" she exclaims, "You _hear_ me?"

"I sleep outside. There's nothin' I don't hear."

"Well, it's _my_ turn to ask the questions, anyways. What do _you_ like to do?"

"Do you really care?"

"Yes."

The princess answers truthfully and so Amarant sighs and decides to entertain her. He's got no weaknesses, after all. "I like fightin'."

"That can't be _all_ you like!" she reprimands, "You must have other things you like to do."

"...I like gamblin', to an extent. Mostly card games. I... hrm. I don't like talkin' about myself, kid."

"I'm _not_ a child," she responds, "And I don't understand why – is it simply because you _want_ to be so enigmatic? And can I have another drink?"

He raises an eyebrow. "Sure, if you really want one..." He waves over a waiter and asks for another round and then, after the waiter leaves, says, "I guess I just don't like thinkin' there's someone out there who knows me, really."

"Well, it's too late for that. The _princess_ knows you," she smiles, "Or, I'd at least _like_ to. We're _friends_, Amarant. I'm not going to use anything you tell me against you."

"I suppose you won't," he agrees, but doesn't return to the topic at hand.

"Well, you like science," Garnet says finally, after a long silence, "Don't you like any art?"

"I don't like paintin's and stuff."

"Art isn't just paintings. Books, plays, music..."

He tilts his head to the side in consent, "I enjoy music."

She smiles largely and waits until the arriving waiter puts down their glasses and leaves again before saying, "I _thought_ you would."

"Not the kind of music _you_ like, princess," he says uneasily, looking around in embarrassment again.

"Don't be so embarrassed," she tells him and takes a drink. "How do you know?"

"Have you ever been in Treno after dark, when the nobles go home and the thieves get too drunk to rob them?"

"...No..."

He sighs, looks away, "Then you don't even _know_ the kind of music I like."

"Well, when we're next in Treno, you'll have to introduce me to it."

Amarant looks at her in confusion. They're... they're _not_ going to come back to Gaia, he's almost sure. Hell, they might even die in the process of getting wherever they're going.

But Garnet looks completely content and her eyes seem to say, "Don't worry; I know what I'm talking about."

So he nods. "When we're in Treno."

About half an hour later, Amarant's feeling more comfortably light with two beers in him, and Garnet's starting to look a little more than tipsy. Two drinks were probably a little too much for someone who's only had light wines.

"I think we should get you a little sobered up, princess."

"What's taking Steiner and Freya so long?" she asks, ignoring his statement and looking around in confusion.

"They went through here a while ago," he tells her. "Come on, you should probably get some sleep."

"I'm not _tired_," she mumbles. "I need to _move_."

"Fine then," Amarant sighs, getting up and crossing his arms. "Let's go walk, okay?"

It's _his_ fault she's so out of it – the least he can do is stay around until she sobers up.

"Alright," Garnet agrees, sliding out of the booth and standing up. She's not completely balanced but she won't fall over, so he puts some gil down – hopefully enough for the drinks and probably over the bill – and looks around.

"It's pretty late," he mutters, seeing that the once fairly full restaurant is empty, and the bartender is one of the last people there, other than a busboy.

"Not _that_ late," she grins, and walks forward boldly. Amarant shakes his head and follows her. They get out to the ring and Garnet crosses her arms behind her back, slowing a little so Amarant can catch up. "So, Amarant," she starts, and he knows something inherently embarrassing is going to come to pass. Her voice is too damned mischievous, and she sounds very... "Do you _dance_ to the music you like?"

He knew it.

"No," he responds quickly, too quickly, and she knows very well that he's lying. Unfortunately for him, she's not exactly subtle at the moment.

"We _both_ know you're lying."

She was obviously telling the truth about the ballet, because she's dancing now to some random, invisible music, even though she's lurching a little and swaying more than in artistic expression, spinning and humming out some weird little tune. She stops her spin to face him, with a childish grin that reminds him a little of Eiko, and bows to him.

"I hope you're not inviting me to dance, you little drunk."

"I am _not_ drunk. And I wouldn't think you'd join me, even if I asked."

"You _are_ drunk, and don't spin around so much. You'll not like the results."

She sticks out her tongue and he almost laughs, almost, because that's just an image he had never thought he'd see. He wonders if she and Eiko are related, somehow, as she spins and does a few more complicated moves as she comes back towards him.

Her foot catches the stone wrong and he _knew_ something bad would happen, so he reaches out and grabs her shoulder, catching her against his chest when she slams face first against him.

"Ow," she mumbles, and looks up. "Sorry."

"It's okay," he responds easily. "Told you-"

He sees her eyes dart to the side and widen, and knows instantly that there's going to be something very bad happen in this instant.

Garnet pushes herself up onto the tips of her toes and throws her arms around Amarant's shoulders, giving him a relatively convincing kiss and not enough time to look the same direction she did.

He _knows_ his eyes are bulging and he _knows_ that he's got a chocobo-frightened face on but Garnet's _kissing him_ so hey, he has every right!

"Wha...-?" comes a voice from the left.

She pulls away and gives Amarant this _smirk_ – imagine, a princess like her _smirking_ at him! – and he realizes he's just been used for a woman's vindictive agenda.

He follows Garnet's gaze to Zidane and feels like he should be doing something other than smirking in a goddamned self-satisfactory way. He knows, though, exactly what Garnet's doing and hey, he's never going to get in trouble with royalty again, with this little bit of blackmail.

"Oh, hello, Zidane," Garnet says innocently, her eyes getting a little big as she looks at him in surprise. The girl on Zidane's arm seems to get that she's been pulled into something because she looks as uncomfortable as Amarant feels right now.

"Uh... Hey, Dagger."

The princess looks up at Amarant with her hands still on his shoulders and says in that too-innocent voice, complete with batting eyelashes, "Weren't you going to show me how to play poker?"

"...Uhm, yeah. Yeah, I think I know who we can get some cards from..."

Garnet stands to his side – away from Zidane – and puts her hand on the small of his back, smiling saccharinely. "I hope you got everything you needed," she tells the blonde thief, "Goodbye."

She pushes lightly so he takes the hint and starts walking, focusing very hard on the fact that he's _walking_, instead of the fact that Garnet is using him for nefarious purposes.

They go through an archway and Zidane and the girl are gone so Garnet steps away and starts giggling a little.

"I'm _so_ sorry," she says honestly between laughs, "I don't know what came over me. It was just there and..."

"Don't worry about it," Amarant drawls. "You'll probably be gettin' a visit from him later on, though. Hope you're prepared for that."

Garnet looks up at him and asks, honestly, "Are you sure you're okay with what I did? I didn't mean to use you like that. I honestly don't know what I was thinking."

"Nah," he waves a hand, "You had a lot to drink for your age and stature. I don't really care, anyways. Anythin' that shocks that monkey is fine with me."

She smiles. "You're not a mean person, Amarant. I'm very glad at least one of us isn't."

He doesn't understand what _that_ means. "I'm not _nice_, kid. You're just lucky I like women."

"You don't have to be nice to not be mean. Now... Weren't you going to teach me poker?"

* * *

Don't blame it on the sunshine, don't blame it on the moonlight... 


	2. Baile Del Enredo

A/N: By the way, this fic came into being after I listened to Captain Jack's version of a Jackson 5 song.

* * *

They spent about half an hour showing up the redheaded thief who was Amarant's new "rival." 

Well, Amarant spent a half an hour showing up. Garnet just watched and asked questions and didn't give away his cards. That's one of his pet peeves – Lani does it all the time and so does nearly every other card-inept woman on the planet as far as he knows. He has a feeling the princess can appreciate the subtleties and the idea of keeping some cards secret.

After all, politics is just like poker – only politics usually end with less bloodshed.

He doesn't even think about it until the thief says, "Looks like your girl fell asleep on you," but Garnet had been dozing for the last five minutes and now it looks like she's finally catching up with her brain and getting some sleep.

Amarant lays out his cards, glares long enough to get every last gil of his winnings, and then tells the thief that they're not rivals, and if it hadn't been for the girl he was with, the bounty hunter would have never given him the time of day.

"Lots of good she does either of us asleep," the thief replies, nearly getting his jaw broken for it.

Amarant waits until the thief gathers up his cards and saunters off to find a place to sleep now that he's out of gil, and then easily picks up Garnet. She's way too light, even for someone her size, and that shouldn't worry him but it kind of does. She's not so bad... for a princess, anyways.

He's always thought she was a strung up a little too tightly, considering the company she's been keeping the past few weeks. Then again, she's a princess.

Then _again_ she's also like Vivi, in the fact that you shouldn't treat her as what she _is_ but rather, what she _wants_ to be treated as.

He's never liked how people shy away when it comes to being upfront, and if it weren't for his aversion to talking to people or divulging information about himself, he would _never_ skip around issues like some people do. And, for what it's worth, he doesn't think he'd be in some other girl's bed if he thought he really _liked_ the one in his arms right now.

He manages to get through the inn relatively easy and heads up the shallow stairs, stopping to adjust the slowly breathing, contently curled up girl in his arms before reaching the hallway.

Steiner is just about to lock his room and leave when he sees Amarant with Garnet in his arms. The knight blinks, and then makes a noise and starts to clank over to the bounty hunter.

"Shh," he hisses, and so the knight stops in his tracks. "Where's her room?"

Steiner looks about to take the princess from Amarant's arms but then changes his mind. "Third on the left," he mumbles. "How much did-"

"She's fine," he responds, efficiently cutting the knight off.

"...Thank you for watching her."

Amarant makes an annoyed noise and grumbles, "She doesn't need _watchin'_. _You_ need to let her _relax_." He paces off down the hall and ignores Steiner utterly.

The doors are all on the same lock system and this worries Amarant, who decides he'll put a chair up against his door, and he uses his key to open her room. It's one of the bigger suites – not by much, but still enough to make him wish he had some extra gil to upgrade.

The bed looks _really_ comfortable and he realizes that he's tired – been tired for a long time – and has to force himself to put _her_ in, rather than dump her on the floor and take the bed himself. He's got his own, anyways.

She's really pretty small and he takes an extra second to pull the blanket up a quarter of an inch higher, just because, before slinking to the door and looking around the dark room once, just in case.

He closes the door softly on his way out and starts off down the hall when he hears footsteps behind him that stop suddenly. He turns and sees Zidane standing near Garnet's door, hand raised to knock, staring at him in confusion.

"Don't bother," he growls, feeling suddenly, inexplicably hostile. "She's asleep."

"Oh." Zidane's hand drops to his side and he starts towards Amarant, stopping a few feet away. "Um... What was...?"

"You're _kiddin'_ me." The bounty hunter crosses his arms, "How was the shop girl for you? Cheap enough?"

"She's a nice girl," Zidane says, giving him a look that warns him against insulting anyone around him right now. "What was all of that... uh...?"

Amarant shakes his head. "I'm not talkin' to a jackass like you," he grumbles, turning and starting away.

"Hey, Amarant!" the blonde exclaims, "Don't you think I deserve _something_, after you-"

The bounty hunter turns and his eyes flash a very serious threat, "Oh, you deserve _somethin'_, alright. But you don't deserve _her_. Come _on._ She's head over heels and you're skippin' through beds while stringin' her along! She's a smart girl, but she's obviously not smart enough, to keep hangin' onto an idiot like you." He waves a hand at Zidane's shocked expression and sighs. "No, I'm not doin' anythin' with the princess. She and I had a few drinks and she felt like being vindictive. Can't blame her for that, can you?"

"She was drinking?"

"_Yeah,_ she was drinkin', for the love of – she's not a little girl. She was upset over _you_ so I figured a drink was in order, and _damned_ if it wasn't! Now, you wait until she wakes up and realizes what she did, and when she comes to you to apologize and explain..." Amarant sighs, "You just tell her what a damned _fool_ you are and how you didn't do anythin' with the shop girl – doesn't matter if you did, you idiot, just _say_ you didn't – and she'll forgive you and you'll forgive her. Then we can go _die_ and not have all this crap going on between everyone."

"Amarant..."

"Now, I'm goin' to bed. I'll see you all in the mornin', if I feel like it and am still too stupid to leave." He turns and begins again, focusing on walking rather than the boy still standing in the hall. His head hurts like hell and he wants nothing more than to go to sleep, but Zidane calls out after him.

"Why did you kiss her, Amarant?"

The bounty hunter groans. "Because _she_ initiated it. She wanted to make you feel bad for going after some other girl."

"But she was drunk – you were kind of taking advantage of the situation-"

Amarant turns and paces forward, grabbing the thief's shoulder in a white-knuckled grip. "There are a _lot_ of things I am. There are a lot of things I'd _do_ for very small amounts of gil. But the _one thing_ I don't do is take advantage of women because they're scared, upset, or otherwise emotionally uneven. Don't _think_ to accuse me of that, Zidane. _Ever_."

He pushes the punk away and stalks off, head throbbing.

* * *

Daytime in Daguerreo is a lot like nighttime – only, there are more lamps lit in the shops and there's less "mood lighting" in the inn. 

Garnet wanders down the hall of the inn, head aching a little but for the most part, she feels alright. She supposes that she fell asleep early enough to sleep off most of the hangover that she had expected to have. She can't help but feel, however, that she's forgetting something. She knows that she drank last night – and too much, at that – and that she had spent most of last night with Amarant, but for some reason certain parts are blurred out, foggy and unrefined.

But she does remember one thing, from when she lay half-asleep in Amarant's arms: "She doesn't need _watchin'_. _You_ need to let her _relax._"

She realizes that everyone is out in Daguerreo, and manages to get a seat at one of the tables. She asks for some juice and some bread, and looks at the table intensely. She knows she shouldn't think much of it, but Amarant had been very... _nice_ to her. It's strange to put him and "nice" in the same thought but it's the only way she can describe him last night.

It was probably just because Zidane had been so...

"Oh, _I didn't_..."

"Yeah, you did. I'm still not holdin' it against you, though, so don't worry."

Garnet jerks her head up and looks at Amarant in confusion as he easily pulls back the chair opposite her and sits down.

"I...I'm _so_ sorry," she apologizes weakly.

"I told you, I don't _care_."

The bread and pitcher of juice arrive and Garnet looks at it uncomprehendingly before catching Amarant by the eyes.

"Why were you being so nice to me last night, Amarant?"

The bounty hunter sighs and sits back in his chair, running a hand over his beard and looking at her seriously – too seriously.

"I told you a lot of mindless stuff last night about stupid things I like. Why should I give you _any more_ now that we're sober? What in the world makes you think I was being _nice_?"

Garnet feels like she should be hurt, but she's starting to see that there's something under that.

"Because you're the only person in our group who isn't mean, Amarant. You're crude, sarcastic, and blunt, but you don't keep things from us because of some ulterior motive. If you don't want to tell us something, it's simply because you _don't_ – not because it will affect how we see you. You're _honest_, relatively. You wouldn't play nice with me for no reason."

"Quit trying to analyze me, princess. I lie all the time."

Garnet shakes her head and leans forward, watching him with severe eyes and making him want to squirm a little.

"Why aren't you mad at me? I'm pushing, I'm talking, I'm _annoying you_. Why aren't you upset?"

"...Do you want an honest answer, princess? Do you want me to tell you something that you don't really want to hear?"

"I _do_ want to hear it," she responds, nodding to express this interest.

Amarant runs a hand over his dreadlocks and pushes them out of his eyes, giving Garnet the first truly _unhindered_ look at his entire face. His eyes are dull and uninteresting, and he can talk without showing any emotion in them, but for some reason...

"We are all about to die," he says, his voice is steady and his eyes carefully blank, "We are about to go on a suicide mission to save a planet that doesn't rightly care one way or another about us." Then, suddenly, there's a flash in his eyes and she draws back, as he says, "The reason I'm being nice to you, Princess Garnet, is because we're all going to die, and I don't want your last image of me to be one of a boorish, overgrown brute all bloodied up because he doesn't know when to quit a death march."

Garnet looks at Amarant, almost uncomprehending what he's saying. When she gets it, she easily reaches out a hand and grabs his wrist. "I didn't mean that," she says, "And why do you care what my impression of you is? Why do you care what _I_ think?"

"...I don't know," he mutters, tilting his head downwards and hiding his eyes once again. "I don't know."

"Amarant..."

"And I don't mean anythin' stupid by all this," he cuts her off, raising his head again. "It's not just you. It's the rat as well. I don't know _why_. I hate not knowing _why_. But it isn't anything special."

Garnet smiles now and says, "I'm honored that you'd want me to have a good impression of you, Amarant, but it's really not necessary. The fact that you are willing to come with us after all of the troubles we've faced speaks more about your character than you'd think."

"It shouldn't honor you," he grumbles, "I'm just a bounty hunter."

She wonders if he really thinks that but what does it matter, anyways?

Garnet lets go of Amarant's wrist and gets up, going over to the bounty hunter's side. She crosses his arms and gives him a smirk that feels so familiar...

"Come on. I think that thief still has some gil we didn't win off of him last night."

He looks at her in confusion and then remembers. "I don't think he does."

"Then we'll play him for his equipment. Are you going to tell me _no,_ Amarant? I'm the princess."

He stares now and then smirks, standing up and shaking his head, causing some of his dreads to fall back into his eyes. "Fine, _princess_. Lead the way."

* * *

Amarant lets Garnet play against the thief and sits back to watch, but he knows that this is a temporary state. They had decided that today, they'd take the Hilde Garde to the Shimmering Island, and take their last plunge. 

Footsteps in water echo through the hall and all three look to see Zidane standing a little awkwardly at the entrance. He lifts a hand and gives a half-wave and asks, "Uh, Dagger? Can I talk to you for a minute?"

She looks at her cards and then lays them flat. "I think this is good, right?"

The thief looks at the hand with an open mouth and silently pushes two daggers, a chimera armband, and a pair of fairy earrings over to the princess.

"A royal flush, huh?" Amarant drawls. "Suitin'."

Garnet smiles at him and then tells the two, "Excuse me for a moment," and gets up, walking to Zidane and disappearing with him down the hall.

"Well, so much for your girl, huh?" the thief drawls, looking to Amarant with a cocky expression, "Why aren't you chasing after them? A man's got a right to a woman, you know?"

"She _isn't_ my woman," Amarant growls. "You don't have any idea what you're talkin' about."

The thief shrugs and offers to play a game with the bounty hunter, who declines and decides to go for a walk. A long one.

It's about an hour later when he runs into someone from their group. Freya is talking with the items keeper, who sees him first and immediately says she has to go clean something.

The Burmecian turns and leans against the counter, eyeing Amarant in amusement. "Much of a hangover, lizard?"

"Not really, rat. What are you doin' here?"

"I was passing time. What are you doing?"

Amarant shakes his head and mutters, "Passin' time. You've gotten pretty buddy-buddy with the tin can lately, huh?"

Freya smiles and waves a hand, dryly stating, "You've done the same with the princess." She laughs lightly at his look and says, "Steiner is simply very noble. It's more satisfying being around him than... well, others."

"No need to beat around the bush," Amarant drawls, "I know who you're talkin' about."

The Burmecian starts walking and so he follows, simply because he has nothing better to do. "Why have you been so nice to Dagger as of late? It's very curious."

"Maybe I just feel like it."

Freya holds up her hands at Amarant's hostile tone and doesn't say anything in response.

"Amarant Coral," comes a very severe voice, and so the bounty hunter turns to see Garnet pacing towards them with her arms crossed. "You _left_ my winnings with Gilgamesh! He nearly took them."

Amarant looks away and mumbles under his breath before shrugging and saying, "Figured you were gonna be busy with that punk for a while."

The princess gives him a kind of confused smile and says, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to leave so abruptly. Zidane wanted to..." She trails off.

"You know when we're going?" the bounty hunter asks, looking at Freya briefly, "We're both gettin' kind of anxious here."

"Zidane says we should start heading back to the airship now, because it takes a while to get everything ready. I was looking for everyone." She smiles at them both and says, "Well, I have to look for Steiner," and easily walks off the way she came.

Freya leans over and looks at Amarant with a smug expression on her face. "You're utterly under her control, lizard."

The bounty hunter turns to look at the Burmecian in annoyance. "What are you talkin' about? I'm not-"

"I'm surprised," Freya cuts him off, starting towards the elevator, "I thought that you wouldn't have much loyalty to your kingdom."

"I'm not Alexandrian," Amarant grumbles, following the rat, "And I'm not one to get wrapped around a girl's finger."

"Mm, that's what Fratley would say," the Burmecian agrees complacently, smiling over her shoulder in a kind of sad, "I-Can't-Help-It" way.

"That's different."

"I don't know about that. Now, shall we go explore the unknown?"

Amarant watches Freya step onto the platform and turn to him expectantly, then sighs.

"Why am I doin' this?" he grumbles, following the Burmecian's lead and getting on the elevator.

Freya swirls her finger and bats her eyes in a rare, womanish moment, and Amarant growls under his breath.

Together, they step off the platform, and Amarant decides _fuck it_, he'll be as nice as he wants to whoever he wants.

It's not like he's going to live long enough to hold up that promise about Treno, after all.

* * *

Don't blame it on the good times, blame it on the boogie. 


End file.
